Gowanus Dredgers serves up stellar art tours

Art tours around the Gowanus 

What better way to learn about the local arts scene than to take a tour with a local artist?  

On the second Saturday of every month, collage artist Rich Garr leads in-depth art walks as part of the volunteer-run Gowanus Dredgers Canoe Club. 

Since the late 90s, Garr has been leading art walks, starting with the Cleveland Museum of Art before joining the Brooklyn Museum. Things got serious in Gowanus when he rented his own studio in 2004. In an email exchange, Garr wrote, “I found the neighborhood fascinating, and reminiscent of The Flats in Cleveland (also a former industrial powerhouse along a polluted waterway [Cuyahoga River] which would infamously catch on fire during its bad old days.” 

Garr has found the best spots around Gowanus through years of biking and daily updates with gallery openings and local news. If you join him from a walk, you’ll likely pass the canal front spot between the Gowanus Dredgers Boathouse and the Carroll Street Bridge. Work by street artist “Wolf Tits” is a must see, as is the “Welkome to Gowanus (heart / love) Jerko” message sprayed across from a new luxury condo. Jerko was an artist-in-residence at Gowanus Dredgers.

“There’s so much to discuss with just that building alone. And there’s wildlife in the water now, too. That’s a whole thing!” 

The walk’s great if you want a boots-on-the-ground understanding of the stakes between long-term residents and new-comers. On each tour, Garr talks about the art community and local residents working together to avoid the “blanket gentrification” that overtook Williamsburg.  

“Everyone likes a good fight,” he said. “Folks like to see who’s fighting, and what they’re fighting for. And the world-class art around the streets just spices it all up.” 

-Matt Caprioli  

Gowanus Dredgers Canoe Club 
165 2nd St 
Reservations through GowanusCanal.org